FDNY Commissioner Laura Kavanagh’s request for ‘out of the box thinking’ sparked demotion drama:

"FDNY Commissioner Laura Kavanagh asked her top brass for fresh ideas to tackle issues within the department, but her chiefs were more interested in how far outside the city they could drive their take-home cars without getting in trouble, a recording exclusively acquired by the Daily News reveals.
The pivotal Feb. 3 meeting, in which Kavanagh demanded “innovative outside the box thinking” from her staff chiefs led to the demotions of three chiefs and the resignations of four others, touching off an internal crisis at the top of the department that has exploded into public view.
The confusing back-and-forth between Kavanagh and her staff chiefs is a startling example of the uphill climb the city’s first woman fire commissioner has faced as head of a 17,000-member agency steeped in tradition.
Four months into her term, Kavanagh has already hit a roadblock — at least four staff chiefs, including Chief of Department John “Jack” Hodgens, the most senior uniformed official in the FDNY, and Chief of Fire Operations John Esposito resigned their ranks this week, outraged that the commissioner personally demoted three other staff chiefs who were considered “bad apples.”